Toledo Rockets vs Bowling Green Falcons preview

http://www.independentcollegian.com/rockets-set-to-renew-battle-of-i-75-with-bg-1.2761245#.UFEGHo2PUSw

It may be just the third game of the season for each team, but the time has come for Toledo and Bowling Green to renew the Battle of I-75.

The 77th installment of this rivalry will be played in September for just the second time and this edition will be the earliest it has ever been contested.

Still, all who are involved understand the importance and magnitude of the annual showdown.

“This is what college football is all about,” said UT head coach Matt Campbell. “We know what the rivalry stands for. A very confident and experienced football team comes into the Glass Bowl in one of the great rivalries in all of college football. We know what it means to our football program and our university and we look forward to playing.”

The Rockets (1-1) enter this game coming off a win last weekend on the road in Wyoming. Terrance Owens threw for 300 yards on 25-of-41 passing and four touchdowns. The junior also added a career-high 74 yards on the ground en route to winning Mid-American Conference West division Player of the Week honors.

Owens was rewarded for his excellent play and remained in the game from start to finish, something that’s been highly rare for UT signal callers the last couple years.

Senior Austin Dantin, the co-starter according to the team’s official depth chart, did not see the field against the Cowboys. He played in each of the last 27 games he was healthy for.

As was the case last week, it appears T.O. will get the nod against BGSU.

“Today, if all was equal, Terrance would start the football game again this week,” Campbell said. “Terrance played an excellent game last week, really got things rolling early in the football game and that’s why we decided to stay with him.”

Bowling Green (1-1) will trot out Matt Schilz, a junior who will suit up against Toledo for the third time.

Schilz has completed 50-of-89 passes for 439 yards with two scores and three interceptions in his two contests against the Rockets, both resulting in losses.

His numbers don’t exactly jump off the page, but Campbell and his staff know what he and the Falcon offense are capable of.

“I think their quarterback is an excellent football player,” Campbell said. “He’s started there [for three years] and is doing a great job and I think we’ll get his best shot. I think they’re a confident football team coming in here this Saturday.”


The Falcons picked up their first win last weekend with a 21-13 win over Idaho.

BG will be facing a UT defense that has yielded over 1,100 yards of total offense in their first two games.

Bowling Green faced a tall task in week one, traveling to Gainesville to face No. 25 Florida. They gave the Gators all they could handle, leading 7-0 after the first quarter and trailing by only three points to begin the fourth before losing 27-14.

Schilz threw for 283 yards on 24-of-35 passing and a touchdown. Sophomore running back Anthon Samuel added a pair of scores on the ground.

“We have great respect for their football team,” Campbell said. “We know it’s a very confident and good football team coming in here. But I think that’s the Mid-American Conference. If you don’t come ready to play each and every week, then you’re going to get beat, and it doesn’t matter who you play in this conference.”

Campbell is no stranger to the I-75 rivalry having coached at both schools. He was with the Falcons from 2003-04 as a graduate assistant and returned to coach the offensive line from 2006-08 before joining the Rockets.

Current UT defensive assistant and special teams coordinator Stan Watson was on Bowling Green’s staff from 2008-11.

Campbell downplayed the notion that he’ll be leaning on Watson for player evaluations this week, but he does know what this game means to both sides.

“Both football programs, both universities have a lot of pride,” Campbell said. “They both have a lot of tradition and I think it means the world to not only the kids that are playing, but to their alumni.”

A new trophy will be at stake this year as the Peace Pipe was retired after the 2010 season because of its negative connotation with Native Americans culture. The Battle of I-75 Trophy was not completed in time for last year’s game, but it was eventually given to Toledo and currently sits in their trophy case.

Along with the new trophy and the earlier meeting between these two bitter rivals, the 7 p.m. start time and the under the lights finish should pump even more excitement into what will surely be an energetic crowd.

“It’s going to be a great atmosphere here, both are great universities,” Campbell said. “Their students, they have a chance to come early in the season be part of what looks like great weather for Saturday and a chance to be a part of something really special here.”

Five judgments from Packers' week one loss to 49ers

http://www.chatsports.com/green-bay-packers/a/NFL-week-one-Five-judgments-from-Packers-loss-to-49ers-10-97-152

(Originally Posted 9-9-12)

1. Same defense, different year

Green Bay’s Achilles heel throughout 2011 was their defense, the secondary in particular. They were dead last in the league in total yards allowed and passing yards allowed per game. They missed tackles, surrendered a ton of big plays and got lost in coverage.

Based on today’s performance, they could be in for a lot more of the same.

The Packers let Alex Smith complete 20 of 26 passes for 211 yards and a pair of touchdowns. On multiple occasions, Smith found his targets with no Packer defender in sight. Randy Moss, Michael Crabtree and Vernon Davis all had catches of 20 yards or more.

Frank Gore ran for 112 yards on 16 carries, an average of seven yards per run.

If defensive coordinator Dom Capers can’t get this defense to play at a higher level, this team will face the same scrutiny and challenges it did last year.

2. Cedric Benson needs to be much, much better

The National Football League may be driven by quarterbacks and wide receivers these days, but that doesn’t mean you can get away with having absolutely no running game.

Cedric Benson, who has gone over the 1,000-yard mark in each of the last three seasons, signed in August and was expected to be Green Bay’s starter in the backfield.

Benson ran it nine times for 18 yards with a long of four yards. Aaron Rodgers may be the MVP and he may have an abundance of weapons around him, but no offense can function without some sort of running game.

Benson ran for 1,067 yards last season with Cincinnati, but averaged just 3.9 yards per carry. Grant averaged 4.2 YPC and took much less of a physical beating.

Benson was a surprise choice over Grant, who is still sitting on the free agent pile. A few more outings like this from Benson and it might be time to give him a call.

3. On the plus side, the pass rush has (hopefully) returned

Aside from giving up massive amounts of yards last year, Green Bay also had a problem getting to the opposing quarterback. They recorded just 29 sacks, 27th in the NFL.

Clay Matthews (2.5) and Charles Woodson (1.5) combined for four sacks on Smith and the Green Bay defense generated pressure on him for most of the game.

Matthews got to the quarterback 13.5 times in 2010, but saw that number plummet to just six in 2011. Offenses started to highlight Matthews as the only legitimate pass rushing threat and doubled, sometimes triple-teamed him on almost every snap.

First round pick Nick Perry should help take some of the pressure off of Matthews and prevent offenses from throwing extra bodies at him.

The secondary looks like it’s still in shambles, but some of those deficiencies can be masked if the Pack can regain their 2010 pass rushing form.

4. Randall Cobb is a superstar in the making

Aaron Rodgers may have a new favorite target in Cobb, a second round choice in 2011. His athleticism is what sold GM Ted Thompson and head coach Mike McCarthy, and he has put that on display ever since returning a kickoff for a touchdown in his first game in the NFL last year.

He fought for playing time in Green Bay’s crowded receiving corps last year, but figures to have a larger role in 2012.

Cobb hauled in nine catches for 77 yards and brought a punt back 75 yards to the house when the Packers were in desperate need of a jolt in the fourth quarter.

Rodgers looked to him in pressure situations and he didn’t disappoint. What makes Cobb so dangerous is his ability to run after the catch and turn a five-yard catch into a 10 or 15 yard gain.

Between the run after the catch ability and his return skills, he looks a lot like Percy Harvin. Expect big things from Cobb this season, especially if defenses sit back and try to take away the deep ball to Greg Jennings and Jordy Nelson.

5. Donald Driver’s role might be even less than originally thought

When Driver agreed to restructure his contract this offseason, we all knew that meant his role would decrease in some capacity. However, most people probably expected him to get on the field for more than three plays in the season opener.

The fan favorite spent almost the entire game on the sidelines before getting in on Green Bay’s final three plays.

The Packers used their no-huddle package quite a bit Sunday. They made substitutions, just not with Driver.

He’s one of the classiest guys in the league and never expresses his frustrations publically, but it’s fair to wonder if this is what he thought he signed up for.

Based on today, Driver won’t see much playing time if Green Bay’s top four receivers (Jennings, Nelson, Cobb and Jones) stay healthy.

Braves' Kris Medlen could be secret weapon in World Series push

http://www.chatsports.com/atlanta-braves/a/Braves-Kris-Medlen-could-be-secret-weapon-in-World-Series-push-10-24-370

There’s a pitcher in baseball riding a streak of 37-2/3 innings without surrendering an earned run and it’s not CC Sabathia, Justin Verlander, or Roy Halladay.

It’s Kris Medlen, a little-known righty from the Atlanta Braves who has recently drawn comparisons to pitchers with considerably more name recognition.

Pitchers like Greg Maddux.

The average baseball fan probably doesn’t know who this guy is. In fact, he recently said on his Twitter account that even in Atlanta nobody recognizes him when he’s out and about, despite going 6-0 with a 0.54 ERA in seven starts.

That’s what Medlen has done since moving from the bullpen to the starting rotation July 31 against the Miami Marlins. The Braves won that game, as they have in each of his last 18 starts.

The only streak longer was the 20 consecutive starts the Yankees won with Roger Clemens on the mound back in 2001.

Medlen has been just about as dominate and overpowering as a pitcher can be. In his last five starts, he’s 5-0 with a microscopic 0.23 ERA, 41 strikeouts and just two walks in 39-1/3 innings.

His magnificent numbers paired with his pitching style have led many Atlanta fans to make comparisons to the Hall of Famer.

He doesn’t blow anyone away with a blazing fastball, but he throws strikes and locates all of his pitches, something he and the Mad Dog have in common.

ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick referred to him as “Maddux Junior” after his most recent start.

Medlen has tossed a pair of complete game shutouts in his last four outings, including in his last. Medlen scattered five hits over nine innings against Colorado Monday and punched-out a dozen Rockies in what was his most impressive performance yet.

The 26-year-old is no stranger starting and seeing success in the big leagues. In 2010, Medlen went 6-0 with a 3.86 ERA in 14 starts before going down with Tommy John surgery. Atlanta won 13 of those games.

After missing nearly the entire 2011 season, Medlen became a bit of an afterthought and left doubt in the minds of many as to what kind of pitcher he would be.

He answered those questions almost immediately in 2012 back where it all started – in the bullpen.

In late May, the Braves were mired in an awful eight-game losing streak and saw starters Mike Minor and Randall Delgado struggle to put zeroes on the board. Needing to shake things up a bit, GM Frank Wren and manager Fredi Gonzalez turned to Medlen.

He was sent down to Triple-A Gwinnett to stretch out his arm and prepare for duty as a starter, a role that will surely belong to him for the foreseeable future.

One reason for starting Medlen in the pen in 2012 was to preserve his arm, which theoretically, is still recovering from Tommy John. The Braves set his innings limit at 150 and he currently has pitched 104.

By limiting Medlen’s innings in the beginning of the year, he should be available for the postseason if the Braves hang on and claim a wildcard spot.

He could be a huge X factor in Atlanta’s rotation, which lacks a true ace.

Tim Hudson is still more than capable of performing well, but at 37-years-old, his days of dominating at a consistent level may be behind him. He’s allowed five or more earned runs on six occasions this year, but also has held teams scoreless five times.

The consistency that Medlen has shown has to make Braves fans very excited about their postseason chances. A potential three-man playoff rotation of Medlen, Hudson and either Paul Maholm or Ben Sheets is certainly a trio that can shutdown opposing offenses.

Medlen returns to the hill tomorrow afternoon at Citi Field in New York. If he pitches like he has been for the last five weeks or so, it won’t be the first time he’s left a stadium full of opposing fans and players shaking their heads.

The Braves hope it won’t be his last.

Toledo Rockets @ Wyoming Cowboys preview

http://www.independentcollegian.com/rockets-travel-to-wyoming-hope-to-avenge-close-10-loss-1.2756884#.UEfwl42PUSw

After their overtime bid came up just short last Saturday against Arizona in Tucson, UT hits the road again this week as they try to avenge another one of their 2010 losses.

The Rockets will travel to Laramie, Wyo. to face off with the Cowboys (0-1) Saturday. Wyoming bested UT 20-15 at the Glass Bowl Oct. 2, 2010. 

Toledo hopes to correct a few minor details from last week that cost them a 1-0 start.

“As we look back, there are some areas we must improve on from an offensive standpoint,” said UT head coach Matt Campbell. “We nearly doubled the time of possession, but at times we didn’t gain what we needed to gain out of that time of possession. At the end of the day, that’s scoring points.”

The Rockets held the ball for over 46 minutes, but 2011’s eighth-best scoring offense was only able to put 17 points on the board in a 24-17 loss and managed just a field goal after halftime. They were 0-for-8 on second half third down attempts after going 10-of-15 in the first half.

“The only disappointment I have is making sure we do a great job of coaching and performing the details that it takes to win close football games,” Campbell said. “That’s just details and little things, I think we’ll get better at that.”

Another area where Toledo must get better is tackling. After watching the film from Saturday night, Campbell believes they let Arizona gain an extra 180-200 yards as a result of missed tackles from UT defenders.

Never was that more of an issue than early in the third quarter with Toledo nursing a 14-10 lead when Arizona running back Ka’Deem Carey exploded up the middle for a 73-yard touchdown. Carey broke three tackles on his way to the end zone and the Rockets never regained the lead.

“I think it’s one of the things we stress more than anything,” Campbell said. “I think why you get better between the first and second week of the season is because of the speed and the emotion of playing a real game. One of the things that happens is execution of details and tackling is something that you can get better at between week one and two.” 

Another area where the Rockets need to improve this week is at cornerback. Campbell praised his secondary for “bending, but not breaking” and thought the game plan was exceptional, but Wildcat receivers Austin Hill and Dan Buckner still combined for 17 catches for 255 yards and a touchdown.

Toledo starts a pair of new corners in freshman Chris Dukes and sophomore Cheatham Norrils. Throughout the game, it appeared that both of them were giving a lot of space to Arizona receivers at the line of scrimmage to prevent the big play.

They avoided “the big one,” but those large cushions left several routes open underneath that went for 15-20 yards each.

Based on Wyoming’s first game against Texas, the UT corners could have their hands full once again.

Junior Robert Herron went wild on a very stout Longhorn defense, hauling in five passes for 173 yards and two touchdowns, including an 82-yarder.

“They had a receiver who had a great day, extremely skilled,” Campbell said. “He made some huge runs on a very good Texas defense.”

The Cowboys led the No. 15 team in the country after the first quarter. Campbell said he admires their style and respects the way they play.

He also praised the performance of their quarterback, Brett Smith. The sophomore threw for 276 yards on 16-of-28 passing and added two touchdowns. Despite two interceptions, he still posted a great QB rating of 149.2.

Smith started every game as a freshman last year, throwing for 2,622 yards while completing 61 percent of his passes. He tossed 20 touchdowns against 11 picks and led Wyoming to an 8-5 record and a trip to the New Mexico Bowl.

“On offense, it looks like they’ve got a quarterback who we’ve got the utmost respect for,” Campbell said. “He’s a kid that’s mobile, but yet can make plays a lot like what we saw out of [Scott] last week.”

The Rockets will counter with their usual dual-QB attack, but this week, Terrance Owens will likely see the field first instead of Austin Dantin.

Since Dantin started last Saturday, Campbell stated that Owens will lead the offense for at least the first series “if all’s even” through practice this week.

Owens twisted his ankle in the third quarter when he was sacked and fumbled the football. Campbell said he was a little gimpy during Monday’s practice, but should be fine by Saturday.

A pair of coaches with strong ties to the Rockets will be roaming the sidelines for the Cowboys.

Head coach Dave Christensen was a Toledo assistant under former coach Gary Pinkel from 1991-2000. Current offensive line coach and run game coordinator Jim Harding made a school record 46 consecutive starts as offensive tackle from 1997-2000.

“I know they’re extremely well-coached,” Campbell said. “Christianson does a great job with his staff and we’ll have to be prepared to play a good football game.”

Former Toledo Rocket Melissa Goodall signs with Italian team

http://www.independentcollegian.com/former-lady-rocket-melissa-goodall-eager-to-begin-her-stint-with-italian-club-cus-cagliari-basket-1.2756881#.UEfvpI2PUSw

Former UT women’s basketball standout Melissa Goodall will continue her European career as she signed with CusCagliari Basket of the Serie A league Tuesday, a team based out of Cagliari, Sardinia.

After she graduated following the 2010-11 season, Goodall spent last year playing professionally in Spain.

“I originally accepted an offer with a team based in Milan, but then that team ended up deciding to pull out of the league this year. Luckily, another team in the Italian League was able to offer me and it was pretty much the same deal I was accepting with the Milan team.”

Goodall said she went about a week and a half between contract offers. Her agency has at least one other player that will be accompanying her to her new squad.

Last season, Goodall played for Uni-Tenerife of the Spanish Second Division Professional Basketball League on a one-year deal. They are based out of Santa Cruz in the Canary Islands.

“It was a lot of fun,” Goodall said. “I really enjoyed my team and the experience that I got from it. To be able to continue to play basketball at a pretty competitive level was a lot of fun and definitely worth my time.”

In addition to being able to play basketball, the former All-Mid-American Conference selection said she enjoyed living in the Canary Islands. Leaving her life in the States behind to start a brand new one in Europe was not as difficult as it might seem.

“Actually, it was a pretty easy decision for me,” Goodall said. “Once my senior year completed itself and saw it end on a pretty good note, at that point, I didn’t want to stop playing.”

Goodall said that head coach Tricia Cullop first presented the idea to her prior to her final season at UT. Cullop and her agents, who have ties to many teams overseas, sat down with Melissa and told him she would likely have an opportunity to play.

“She said that if I continued to have the success that I had the previous years, there would be no problem and I should be able to do it. Once she said that, I was like, ‘alright, why not?’”

The former Rocket is taking her pro basketball career one year at a time and doesn’t want to commit to anything for an extended period of time. She said that after her positive experience in Spain, she knew she wanted to continue to play, regardless of location.

“I considered a couple teams in Germany earlier in the summer,” Goodall said. “They were good offers, but they weren’t exactly what I wanted at the time, so we decided to wait a little bit longer to see what came along.”

Goodall got in touch with a few people from her new Italian team via Facebook and was able to find out some information about the squad. Her agents also had prior relationships with the club.

During her time at Toledo, Goodall finished tied for first in games played (131), fourth in blocks (83) and 16th in scoring (1,131).

In her senior season, she averaged 12.9 points, 6.9 rebounds and 1.1 blocks, playing a large part in UT’s WNITchampionship.

Despite relocating, Melissa had maintained relationships with her UT coaches and teammates. She traveled toNaama Shafir’s hometown in Isreal with the team last summer and has played pickup games when she’s been around Toledo.

“I’m still really good friends with almost all the girls on the team,” Goodall said. “Coach Cullop is a stellar coach and her relationship with you doesn’t end when you graduate.

“Would I be willing to come back and play at Toledo again? I totally would. If that was option, I’d be back out there, for sure.”

Mistakes cost Toledo in season opener vs Arizona

http://www.independentcollegian.com/mistakes-cost-ut-in-season-opener-1.2755583?pagereq=1#.UEP9qtaPUSw

The first time the Rockets faced Rich Rodriguez, some bizarre things transpired in the later stages.

History repeated itself Saturday, except this time Rodriguez walked away victorious after a wild 24-17 overtime win.

“I was so proud because our kids played so hard,” said UT head coach Matt Campbell. “Give a lot of credit to Arizona and their kids and their staff. I think it’s just a matter of us cleaning up and Toledo taking care of what Toledo does.”

With the game tied at 17, Arizona (1-0) started a drive at their own 20-yard line with 4:43 remaining in regulation. Senior quarterback Matt Scott moved the ball with ease against a Toledo defense that appeared to be overmatched all night, moving the chains on five consecutive plays at one point.

As the Wildcats crept closer to the goal line, they started to take as much time as possible off the clock.

On second and goal, Scott took the snap and fell down right in the middle of the hash marks, setting up a 25-yard chip shot for kicker John Bonano.

With no timeouts left, Toledo (0-1) could only watch as Arizona ran the clock down to two seconds before calling their final timeout to set the stage.

The field goal attempt was nothing more than an extra point, but a bad snap and hold caused Bonano to shank it badly to the left, his second miss of the night from inside 30 yards.

The Wildcats possessed the ball first and UT’s defense forced them into a 3rd and goal from the 10 and appeared to have come up with a huge defensive stand.

Senior defensive tackle Danny Farr chased Scott all the way to the right sidelines and had a firm grasp of his jersey. Farr threw back across his body, letting go of the ball milliseconds before being pulled to the ground and found an open Terrence Miller for a touchdown.

The Rockets had a chance to respond, but nothing went according to plan in their overtime series.

On the first play, senior quarterback Austin Dantin found an alley only to trip over his own feet. It wound up as a seven-yard gain, but he may have taken it all the way into the end zone had he remained upright.

An illegal procedure and delay of game penalty forced UT into a 3rd and 20 from the 23. An incompletion brought up a decisive 4th and 20, but all Dantin could do was heave one into the end zone.

None of his receivers appeared to be open and the ball fell to the ground, ending the hopes of knocking off a Pacific-12 Conference team on the road.

“It was just execution,” Campbell said. “A couple little things here and there we just have to clean up offensively. The noise was a little bit of a factor. We have to make sure we do a better job next week.”

Trailing 3-0 in the second quarter, the Rockets took the lead when junior quarterback Terrance Owens threw a pass towideout Alonzo Russell 59 yards down the sidelines for a 7-3 lead.

Owens finished the night 11-of-22, passing for 134 yards and a score. Dantin played the first two possessions, but Owens finished out the first half.

The Wildcats came right back with the help of several big pass plays, something UT struggled with all game.

Scott found senior Dan Buckner for plays of 21 and 22 yards before finding sophomore Austin Hill for a 30-yard touchdown strike.

Hill got behind the entire Toledo secondary and made a tremendous diving catch in the end zone.

Scott put on a clinic, completing 30-of-46 passes for 384 yards and two touchdowns. Hill had a game-high 136 receiving yards on seven catches.

“We knew he could throw and he showed he can definitely do that,” Campbell said.

Arizona had a chance to add on before halftime, but Hill lost the ball as he stumbled after a nice catch-and-run into Toledo territory.

Arizona’s three turnovers — including one in the red zone — and many untimely penalties allowed the Rockets to stay within striking distance all night.

UT struggled to find the right formula offensively in the second half, scoring just three points.

“It’s tough, the first game of the year, you want to go out there and play great,” Dantin said. 

“Arizona played their heart out, as did we, but we came up a few plays too little.”

Campbell stuck with Owens into the third quarter until he lost a fumble at his own 32. Dantin replaced him for the rest of the game after sitting on the bench since the team’s second series.

“I felt good [after sitting so long],” Dantin said. “T.O. did a good job when he was in there. We’ve done it for so long now that it’s really just second nature. We left a couple plays out there that obviously cost us the game.”

Campbell said he wanted more of run presence at quarterback, so he kept Dantin in for the majority of the second half.

“They were blitzing us a lot and giving us a lot of man pressure,” Campbell said. “I thought some quarterback run game might loosen things up for us and get us going.”

Trailing 14-10 in the third, Arizona running back Ka’Deem Carey exploded up the middle with the help of three missed tackles for a 73-yard touchdown to take a 17-14 lead with 10:44 to play in the third.

Arizona held advantages in nearly every category. They piled up 623 yards of total offense, nearly doubling UT’s 347 yards.

Russell led all Toledo receivers with 71 yards on three catches. Bernard Reedy had a career-best nine catches for 55 yards and also returned a kick 60 yards.    

The Rockets will be on the road again next week as they travel to Wyoming to take on the Cowboys Saturday, Sept. 8 at 4 p.m.

Toledo Rockets eager to begin season, face Arizona Wildcats

http://www.independentcollegian.com/rockets-eager-to-start-regular-season-face-arizona-saturday-1.2754040#.UEP9JtaPUSw

(Originally published 8-29-12)

After winter conditioning, spring ball, fall practice and nearly 250 days, it’s finally time for the Rockets to return to the football field Saturday night when they battle the Arizona Wildcats in the desert.

The last time Toledo stepped onto the gridiron, they emerged victorious in the 2011 Military Bowl with a thrilling 42-41 victory over Air Force in head coach Matt Campbell’s first game at the helm.

UT hopes to begin 2012 the way they finished 2011 – with a big win.

“I think there comes a point in time when the Rockets are sick of playing the Rockets and it seems like we’ve been doing that for the last six or seven months,” Campbell said. “I know our kids are really excited, I’m proud of how hard they’ve worked to get to this point and I think we’re looking forward to finding a little bit more about ourselves as we get into game week.”

Toledo is no stranger to the big stage and their track record shows they know how to handle it.

Since 2003, UT has beaten six schools from BCS conferences, ninth most among all non-BCS teams. Colorado, Kansas, Michigan, Purdue and ninth-ranked Pittsburgh have all fallen victim to the Rockets.

Syracuse and no. 15 Ohio State were very close to being added to that list last season.

“It’s the tradition of Toledo and I think we always embrace what the tradition of this great university is in our program,” Campbell said. “I think the biggest focus for us and our kids is certainly one game at a time. I think that we’ve really tried to embrace that motto of ‘one day at a time’ through camp and spring practice.”

If UT makes Arizona its next victim, it won’t the first time they’ve gotten the best of the Cats’ new head 

coach.

UT’s upset over Michigan at the Big House in 2008 occurred in Rich Rodriguez’s first year in-charge of the Wolverine program. Rodriguez was given the Arizona job last November, 41 days after Mike Stoops was fired six games into the season.

2011 was a very rough year for Arizona, who dropped five of their first six games. They finished the season 4-8 (2-7 PAC-12) and found themselves in a last place tie in the South division.

The Wildcats do return some talented players, however, especially on the offensive side of the ball.

“They’ve got PAC-12 talent, and that’s the first thing I’ll say about their football team,” Campbell said. “When you look at them across the board, they’ve got five of their offensive lineman back from last year that played and started. So they’ve got great experience.”

Fifth year senior Matt Scott has been given the nod at quarterback and fits Rodriguez’s patented Zone-Read Option perfectly. He possesses an adequate arm and can also run effectively.

Scott has played sparingly during his time in Arizona, but has put-up solid numbers in his limited opportunities. From 2008-10, he completed 114 of 177 passes for 1,301 yards and six touchdowns. He added 632 rushing yards and two more scores on the ground.

Scott, who redshirted last year, has giant shoes to fill that Nick Foles left behind. Foles accounted for over 352 total yards per game in 2011, fourth best in the country.

“The quarterback, by all indications, is a man that’s got great athleticism and he can throw the football,” Campbell said. “I think they’ve got to feel really good about who they are offensively.”

Toledo’s spread offense is similar to what Rodriguez will use with the Wildcats, but the quarterback situation is slightly different.

Campbell said he will likely name a “starting” quarterback after Wednesday’s practice, but both will play throughout the season, as was the case last year.

Both junior Terrance Owens and senior Austin Dantin will look to pick apart a defense that ranked second-to-last in college football against the pass last season.

Both signal callers had outstanding seasons in 2011. Owens set an all-time single season Mid-American Conference record by completing 72.2 percent of his passes while Dantin posted the 21st-best QB efficiency rating with a 149.7.

“Offensively, we’ve got to do a great job of taking care of the football and when we have an opportunity to score points, we have to score points,” Campbell said.

As if Toledo needed any more reason to be excited to take the field again, their first game of the year will be in front of a crowd of 51,811 people and nationally televised on ESPNU at 10:30 p.m. EST.

“I think any time you get a chance to go into a great environment and you have a chance to play in front of a great crowd and a great, historic football program, then I think your kids get excited about those opportunities,” Campbell said. “I know we’re excited, but I think more than anything, we’re excited just to kickoff 2012 and find out a little more about us.”